


Mirror Image

by erintoknow



Series: Aria-Rough Drafts [26]
Category: Fallen Hero Series - Malin Rydén, Fallen Hero: Rebirth (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Gender Dysphoria, Gender Issues, Screenplay/Script Format, Trans Female Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-01
Updated: 2019-06-01
Packaged: 2020-04-06 04:27:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19055227
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/erintoknow/pseuds/erintoknow
Summary: For Ariadne, playing as her puppet Jane is like following a Script.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Rather then try to replicate the Script formatting from Celtix, here it is as image files. The following chapter is just a raw text dump on the off chance someone needs that.
> 
> this was an earlier experimental piece. working with celtix is fun, bit ultimately more trouble then it was worth, i think

 


	2. Raw Text

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raw text of Script, without the proper formatting

 

SCENE

_Joes. A a haze of smoke curled by the ceiling_

_fans, pierced by cheap sodium-yellow lights. In_

_the corner booth the consummate scientist, Dr._

_Mortum is deep in discussion with her drinking_

_partner, Jane, a young woman in fine evening wear._

DR. MORTUM

-the problem is once things get small enough, you have

to start dealing with quantum tunneling effects ruining

the logic gates, just silicon alone isn’t enough... any

more... Jane?

JANE

(playing with her glass of wine)

Wh-what? I’m listening.

 

DR. MORTUM

You don’t need to save my feelings, mon amie, I know I

can get carried away.

JANE

You were discussing how quantum effects put an

effective limit on how small logic gates can get.

 

DR. MORTUM

(Impressed)  
You _were_ listening. Still. You seem distracted this evening.... moreso then usual.

JANE

Am I? I’m sorry. Everything with work has me ragged.

(A beat)

Villainy never sleeps, you know how it is.

DR. MORTUM

Mon amie, that man is trouble. For you specifically, I

mean. Did you think about what I said last week?

JANE

I can’t quit a job halfway, you know that.

DR. MORTUM

A yet, sometimes, there comes a time in life when we

must. Your reputation can be repaired. But your life,

alas, it can not.

(She reaches for Jane’s hand)

This man, this boss of yours, Puppetmaster. I have seen

his type come and go before, and it never ends well for

those in the periphery, trust me on this.

_The look on Jane’s face is pained, she pulls back_

_her hand and finishes her glass._

JANE

You’re not wrong. Once this next project is done, maybe

I’ll have a talk with them.

DR. MORTUM

The last time you said that, you came back crowing of

about your bonus and two more jobs. One of which,

you’ll remember, I had to help stitch you back together

afterwards.

JANE

And I’m grateful you did.

DR. MORTUM

And don’t think I’ve forgotten how you got hurt at the

Gala.

JANE

You only know about that one because I told you.

DR. MORTUM

No, I think the mass of bruises gave it away. And you

saying that does not reassure me on this matter.

JANE

I’m glad we’re friends, that’s certainly a bonus I

never expected to get out of our first meeting. It’s

a... refreshing experience.

_Jane stands up the table, making ready to leave._

JANE

But have a little faith in me. I don’t think I’ve run

out my luck just yet.

 

DR. MORTUM

(Weary)

Run an experiment enough times, mon amie, and you’re

bound to mess it up at least once.

JANE

Well, I guess we’ll just have to see about that.

 

———

Seeing her face in the mirror is a queer feeling. Jane takes the washcloth and runs it under warm water before wiping her face down. It’s a process, pealing each layer of artifice, but almost meditative in its destructiveness. Left underneath it all, is a face that is uncomfortably familiar, but just different enough. The nose is little smaller, a little less pointed, the jaw a little sharper, teeth whiter, eyes less shadowed.

You need Jane to be your face as much as she needs you to be her anima. Without you, the sleeping princess would still be in that hospital, another Jane Doe, unclaimed and unwanted.Lately though, after a long day as Jane you’re left sick with jealousy. To be so close to everything you ever wanted; to be human, to be female, to be normal, to be so close and yet still a ghost.

With the morning sun poking through the blinds, Jane finishes her bedtime routine: brushing teeth, combing hair, crawling into bed. Jane is confident in her purpose, unbothered by the bizarre schedule that playing two lives in parallel has forced you into. Jane stretches out her arms, pulls up the blankets, and takes a deep breath.

And you exhale.


End file.
